I mentioned earlier this summer I'd be back with a hopefully positive result, and positive it was. Going from a somewhat overweight and out of shape 50something at the start of June, I followed a very strict training program and diet adjustment that made Whitney a very easy hike the second time around.
Things that transformed my fitness and helped transition from a failed June attempt to a very smooth August summit:
1) Rucking. What an easy way to really build up legs, back, ankles, your entire core. Sometimes it was simply walking the neighborhood for a few miles, sometimes it was local mountains with a steep incline. Started at 20 pounds on the back and have worked my way up to 65 (Which I'll likely stay at). I was slightly losing a few pounds here & there from just mid-range cardio and weights, but when I introduced rucking into the mix, the pounds just started falling off. Another added benefit is the carrying 30-ish pounds on your back up to Trail Camp feels no heavier than a bag of feathers.
2) Treadmills on max grade. Kicked it up to a 15 incline and would go for 3 to 4 hours at a slow and steady pace without stopping. This part I believe really helped make the switchback go a lot smoother. The actually grade on the switchbacks rarely felt like it was any higher than around 10.
3) A 12/14/16 Plyometric box. Wearing the ruck bag, usually no more than 50 pounds, doing thousands of step ups/downs. This really helped the knees during that dreaded walk back to the portal that feels 2x as long as it did coming up.
Diamox: We took it. Felt no real problems except frequent urination. Half doses two days prior then upped it on the day we started. Never felt any effects of the altitude.
Pacing: We maintained a very deliberate 1mph pace and never needed to stop for breaks, except when nature called or we forced ourselves to stop and eat/drink something. Was it difficult to go so slow when you were loaded with energy and excited? Yes. Did my wife have to remind me repeatedly to slow down? No comment.
Stray Wag bags: Yes, they're laying around in places, but there's no real point in complaining about it. I've noticed (especially on Facebook groups) that many hikers spend a lot time whining, complaining and judging eithers but that's simply not the way to get inconsiderate hikers to change their behavior. One of the best arguments on why wag bags are so necessary on Whitney was recently posted on the MyLifeOutdoors channel last week, perhaps if more people watched this they'd learn to appreciate the importance of our responsibility to keep the place clean:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAfnFpZc2ioNUUN Hydration Tablets: These things are a DREAM. The Ginger Lemonade flavor is the best. The added bonus of these containing caffeine helped avoid the headaches since we were being deprived of our regular morning routine beverages. Goodbye to Gatorade and all that sugar.
What a fantastic place filled with so many amazing and supportive people you meet out there. We made some new friends that I suspect we'll be hiking with in the years to come. Thanks for all the responses and dietary tips in this thread, it helped us change the way we fueled ourselves for this.
Take care all. Onto Langley hopefully after this nasty weather gets out of here!
